A British tourist has been quarantined in Italy after potential exposure to hantavirus, following contact with a woman who later died from the virus. The man, believed to be in his 60s, was detained in a Milan bar before being taken to hospital after authorities discovered he had been on the same flight as the victim.
He and a companion have been placed in isolation until June 6, despite showing no symptoms and testing negative for the virus. The action is part of wider efforts to contain an outbreak linked to a cruise ship, which has triggered an international response due to multiple infections and deaths.
The British tourist travelled on the same Airlink flight from Saint Helena to Johannesburg as Mirjam Schilperoord, 69, who later died after contracting the disease. She was the wife of Leo Schilperoord, 70, believed to be the first fatality linked to the outbreak. The virus has been traced back to exposure in Argentina, where the couple are thought to have contracted the Andes strain after visiting a landfill site near Ushuaia during a South American trip.
The outbreak is linked to the cruise ship MV Hondius, where 11 passengers have been infected and three have died. Leo Schilperoord became ill shortly after boarding, suffering symptoms including fever, headaches and stomach pain before dying on board days later. Mirjam Schilperoord later fell ill while travelling to South Africa. She was denied boarding on a flight to Amsterdam and taken to hospital, where she died on April 26. A third passenger, a German national, has also died.
The World Health Organization said there is currently no evidence of a wider outbreak but warned more cases could emerge. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told The Mirror: “At the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak, but of course the situation could change and, given the long incubation period of the virus, it’s possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks.” He added that further infections remain likely due to close contact among passengers and the virus’s incubation period.
